Research using fruit flies sheds light on how other species might identify and steer clear of foods with high alkalinity or pH levels. The sense of taste plays a vital role in our food experiences as it serves as an initial protective barrier before we ingest it. Despite this, the ability of animal
and highlighted in, identified a previously unknown chloride ion channel, which they named alkaliphile , as a taste receptor for alkaline pH.
While we are familiar with sour taste, which is associated with acids and allows us to sense the acidic end of the pH scale, little is known about how animals perceive bases on the opposite end of the pH spectrum. Detecting both acids and bases, which are commonly present in food sources, is important because they can significantly impact the nutritional properties of what animals consume.
The team’s work demonstrates that Alka is critical for flies to stay away from harmful alkaline environments. “Detecting the alkaline pH of food is an advantageous adaptation that helps animals avoid consuming toxic substances,” said Zhang. In addition, Zhang’s group studied how flies detect the taste of alkaline substances using light-based optogenetic tools. They found that when they turned off alkaline GRNs, the flies were no longer bothered by the taste of alkaline food. Conversely, they activated these alkaline GRNs by shining red light on them. Interestingly, when these flies were given sweet food and exposed to red light at the same time, the flies did not want to eat the sweet food anymore.
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